For One More Chance
by Alpha142
Summary: The battle between Akatsuki and the Leaf has taken a turn for the worse. Konoha now lies in ruins. A freak event gives Kakashi another chance. Can he fix things, or is history doomed to repeat itself? Kakashi centric time-travel. See profile for more info
1. Chapter 1:  The Ruins

**For One More Chance**

**Chapter 1: The Ruins**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto.

**Notes**: This is just a scene I've had floating around in my mind for a long while. I've actually had this written for some time, but I just recently found it again. I decided to give it a bit of an update and do something with it. I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

Kakashi stood in the middle of the ruined village street, staring remorsefully down at the broken body of one of his first students, his uncovered Sharingan permanently burning the scene into his memory.

Sakura's lifeless body sat in the street, shattered and forgotten in the chaos of the still raging battle that had claimed so many lives already. Her face was an ashen gray, devoid of its usual liveliness, and her natural beauty was marred by blood and the unrelenting grip of death.

A huge explosion rocked the ground a distance away, and a familiar, almost overwhelming chakra rushed over him. He paid it no mind. Nothing outside of the fact that one of his students was dead mattered to him anymore. He had failed her, just as he had failed so many others that he had cared about.

The silver-haired man heard someone land roughly on the ground a few feet behind him, but he didn't shift his gaze from Sakura's body. "I've failed them all, Guy. I was never worthy of being a jonin sensei."

The usually energetic Guy chanced a glance in the direction of the explosion as he solemnly walked over to the silver haired ninja. He placed a hand on the copycat's shoulder in an attempt to reassure his longtime friend and rival. "You did the best you could. Circumstances just weren't kind to them."

The legendary ninja solemnly shook his head. "No, I didn't do the best I could. I was so focused on trying to keep Sasuke in the village that I outright ignored Naruto and Sakura's training. Even then, Sasuke left the first chance he got. I should've known that there wasn't anything I could have done to stop him, and I never should've ignored the other two's training. This is all my fault."

Guy opened his mouth to respond, but he was interrupted when a giant, orange kitsune leg came crashing down a few yards away. The taijutsu master jumped back at the sudden appearance of the mythical kitsune. He looked up at the Kyubi, fear and respect mingling on his face.

He now fully understood why it was so feared. The sheer power of the monster's chakra alone was almost suffocating, and its eyes were filled with nothing but malice. They needed to leave. Now.

Guy looked over at the other jonin. He had not reacted at all. "Kakashi, we need to get out of here!"

The Kyubi glared down at the two and bared his teeth. A low, menacing growl issued forth from it's throat.

The silver-haired ninja's only response was to slowly look up at the Kyubi. Pain and remorse clearly visible on his face. "I'm sorry…Naruto."

The giant kitsune roared and lunged at him.

"Kakashi, move!" Guy yelled out as he tried to react in time to help his friend. Even after many years of training his body far beyond it's limits, the veteran ninja just wasn't fast enough.

'I'm not going to make it!' He thought in horror as the giant fox's mouth sped down at Kakashi. Time seemed to slow down for Guy as he watched, what he believed to be, the death of one of his longtime friends.

"Kamui." Moments before the Kyubi's razor sharp teeth made contact with Kakashi, there was the signature warping of space-time of the copycat's attack. A second later, a huge shock-wave of extremely powerful chakra exploded outward, forcing everything back with immense force.

Guy covered his face with his arms in surprise as he flew backwards into one of the few remaining standing walls in Konoha. He ignored the sharp pain he felt in his back and scanned the ruined street where his friend and the demon had been.

There was nothing there except for the rubble of a once powerful hidden village and the bodies of their dead. "What just happened?"

* * *

**Notes:** I really don't have much beyond this thought out, but I think that this would be an interesting fic to write. Opinions? I'm thinking of having this story have much shorter chapters that will be released with more frequency than TTAFR. I'm hoping that if I get stuck on TTAFR, I could work on this story and then go back to TTAFR with a fresh mind. Just as a word of warning, this story will have Naruto and Hinata as a pairing. I'm open to pairings other than that. Just tell me what you want. Anyway, thank you for reading! Have a great day!

Edited on October 10, 2011: A quick polishing.


	2. Chapter 2:  Unforeseen Consequences

**For One More Chance**

**Chapter 2: Unforeseen Consequences **

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto.

**Notes**: A plate of cookies to anyone that gets the reference I made in the chapter name. I didn't get this finished as quickly as I would have liked, but I guess it is better than the time between the chapters of TTAFR. Anyway, please enjoy chapter two of "For One More Chance!"

* * *

The only thing that Kakashi could think about was how badly his head was pounding. To him, it felt as though someone had just taken a steel pole to the side of his head. Multiple times. The jonin groaned quietly and grabbed his head with his left hand in a vain attempt to alleviate the pain.

'What happened?' Kakashi asked himself mentally as he struggled to think over the pain. Hadn't he just tried to stop the Kyubi with Kamui? Had it worked? He searched for the Kyubi's chakra and felt his heart sink. No. He could still feel the kitsune's oppressive chakra. He had failed again.

"Kakashi, you're awake!"

The legendary ninja grimaced slightly at the loudness of his friend's outburst, but he felt a small bit of relief. At least Guy had survived. Perhaps he could tell him what had happened.

The copycat grimaced again as he sat up. His head didn't seem to agree with fast movements. He powered through the pain and opened his uncovered eye, tiredly glancing up at his energetic friend. "What happened, Guy?"

"I don't know. You were standing next to me one second and on the ground the next. The Kyubi's chakra must have disrupted your flames of youth!" the somewhat eccentric man replied, though in a much more subdued way than usual.

Kakashi frowned slightly, partially because of the pain and partially because of his friend's appearance and answer. Guy wasn't wearing his flak jacket, and his response was odd. What did he mean he had been standing next to him? Hadn't Guy jumped back when the Kyubi appeared?

His answer came a second later when he happened to glance past Guy. His heart almost stopped from surprise. 'Wha…how?'

The silver-haired ninja shot up, his headache completely forgotten, and raced forward. He didn't get far. The barrier surrounding the group of younger ninja quickly stopped him in his tracks and threw him backwards.

"Kakashi?"

Ignoring the question, he caught himself and raced forward again, but he stopped at the barrier this time and pounded on it. "Rin! Stop! RIN!"

The medical kunoichi didn't seem to hear Kakashi's desperate yells as she continued speeding through the trees on her way towards the destructive Kyubi.

'Damn it!' Realizing that his former teammate hadn't heard him and wasn't going to stop, the masked man frantically began searching for a way out of the barrier. He couldn't lose her again. No, he wouldn't lose her again. Not when he had even the slimmest of chances to save her.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. "Kakashi, what's going on?"

He glanced back at Guy and hurriedly responded. "I'll explain everything later."

The eccentric ninja studied him for a few seconds before nodding and taking a step back.

Kakashi began looking for a way out again and spotted a man, whom he assumed to be Kurenai's father, just outside the barrier. He focused on the man. "You have to let me out!"

The man shook his head solemnly. "I am sorry, but I cannot. I will not allow you younger ninja to risk your lives on this matter."

Kakashi felt panic set in. Every second he wasted here, the more chance there was of Rin dying. His mind began scrambling for a reason that he should be let out.

A thought crossed his mind and made him pause. If he had really been transported back to when the Kyubi had first attacked the village, then wasn't he still in ANBU? Yes. He would have to be let out if the Hokage had requested all ANBU to assist in the defense of the village. Letting it be known that he was in ANBU would cost him his position later, but he didn't care about that. Rin's survival was more important than any position. He just really hoped that the imprisonment of the younger ninja wasn't an order from Minato himself.

He looked back up at Kurenai's father. "I'm ANBU. I'm required to aid in the defense of the village no matter the situation."

Murmurs erupted behind Kakashi, but he didn't pay them any mind. He had always been the stuff of gossip.

The man's eyebrows drew together in thought as he stared at Kakashi. It was obvious that he was reluctant to make a decision. It was a long time before the man sighed and motioned to a ninja above one of the seals. "Release him."

"What! You're letting him out, but not us?" Kurenai exploded.

"You are not in ANBU, my daughter. Please understand that we are doing this to keep you safe." Kurenai's father responded before refocusing on Kakashi. "I hope that your friend appreciates what you are doing. Good luck."

Kakashi felt relief flood his body as he tensed, ready to exit the barrier as soon as it was down. "Thank you."

The barrier dropped and the jonin rocketed out. The barrier was up again a second later. No other person within the barrier had made a move to escape.

He wasted no time in rocketing off in the direction he had seen his former teammate go. Nothing other than her safety was on his mind. Not even the fact that he may have been sent back in time. 'I'm coming, Rin. Please be safe.'

* * *

**Notes**: That concludes chapter two. I hope that you all enjoyed it! As always, I would love to read any and all reviews you leave. Oh, and do you think that the characterization of Kakashi and the other characters is alright? I would really appreciate some feed back on that.

Now that this chapter is finished, I think I will be turning my full attention to TTAFR, so I wouldn't expect another chapter of this anytime soon. Though I will always try to keep my progress and any decision changes I may make up to date on my forum. Here is the link: h t t p : / / f o r u m . f a n f i c t i o n .net/forum/Alpha142s_Fanfiction_Discussion_Forum/84657/. Sorry for the spaces, but it destroys any mentions of websites unless there are spaces in between the letters.

Please stop in and say hello! I would really appreciate it, and I can almost guarantee that the more I hear from readers, the more productive I will be when it comes to writing.

That's about all I have to say, so have a great day!

Edited on October 10, 2011: Again, just a quick polishing.


	3. Chapter 3:  Broken

**For One More Chance**

**Chapter 3: Broken  
**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto.

**Notes**: Hello, all! My laziness when it comes to writing continues to amaze and frustrate me. I'm sorry. Also, thanks to those that took the time to vote! There weren't many, but there were enough to give me a definitive answer on what was going to happen to Rin. I'll stop bothering you now. I hope you enjoy chapter 3!

Thanks to That Which Is Mesataki for proof-reading this chapter!

* * *

The sounds of battle echoed coldly throughout the darkened forest. Grunts and yells of exertion, desperate calls to push the enemy back and screams of pain and agony, all periodically drowned out by the thunderous, inhuman roars of the Kyubi.

An icy feeling settled on Kakashi's heart as he raced towards the battlefield. The long repressed memories of that night came crashing to the forefront of his mind. He hadn't shown it then and certainly wouldn't show it now, but he had felt so helpless behind the protective force field some of the elder ninja had constructed. So many brave and skilled ninja had fought and died in the desperate attempt to defend the village, but he…they had been forced to sit back and watch.

The jonin still hated the idea that they had been unable to help in the defense of their village, even if he did agree with the decision now. But if things were truly as they seemed, then he had a chance to change things.

Kakashi was still hesitant to believe that they were. Despite some of the amazing things chakra and jutsu were capable of, time travel was just not possible.

Or was it? Had the Kyubi been capable of time travel all along, but was unable to do so while trapped within Naruto? Perhaps. The demon fox was extremely powerful, and no one really knew exactly what the Nine Tails was capable of. Despite that, he doubted it. There were far more reasonable possibilities for his current situation, such as genjutsu. Though he silently hoped he had been sent back in time.

The silver-haired ninja struggled to feel the presence of a genjutsu over the kitsune's disruptive chakra. Nothing.

His hope skyrocketed, though he quickly and mercilessly quelled it. There was a chance that an extremely powerful genjutsu user like Madara or Itachi had placed a illusion on him; in which case, he doubted he would be able to find it, let alone escape it.

Kakashi forced those thoughts away. No matter what the truth of his situation was, he decided he would have to try to make things right. If nothing more than for his own sanity.

Instantly, his keen mind began dredging up his long repressed memories of the day's events to figure out what he needed to do. Two things immediately jumped to the forefront of his mind. One of which he was already moving to fix.

The masked man signed. A shadow clone rocketed out of the newly created cloud of smoke in an attempt to keep up with his creator. The ANBU didn't spare it a glance as he came to a hard stop on a branch. "Find Rin."

The clone nodded and continued on the medic's trail while Kakashi concentrated on trying to find his mentor's chakra. 'I hope I'm not too late.'

A moment later, his uncovered eye snapped open and he looked to his right. The ninja disappeared from his position in the tree. To the untrained eye it would have looked like he had simply vanished, but five small leaves drifting in the wind would have been telling to any competent ninja.

* * *

The shadow clone carefully scrutinized the forest around him as he raced after his former teammate. There were few signs of her passage through the area, but he would have disappointed if there had been. He focused a little bit of chakra into his nose took in a deep breath. The natural smells of the forest filled his nostrils along with the scents of battle, the most prominent of which was metallic in nature.

Over the other smells, he could barely make out a faint floral scent. With his trained nose, he could tell it was obviously artificial, but not overpoweringly or unpleasantly so. The jonin focused on the scent and shifted directions slightly.

A frown formed as he followed his friend's trail. The smell of blood was progressively getting stronger. The worry he had though he had dismissed began eating away at him once more, but he didn't have a chance to squelch it this time.

The masked ninja broke through the canopy and gracefully landed in a clearing. One he was certain had not been there that morning.

His heart plummeted as he glanced around the area. The broken bodies of heroes laid scattered among the shattered and fallen trees as their blood stained the forest floor.

Kakashi solemnly began moving through the devastated clearing, silently sending up prayers for the departed. He jumped over a fallen tree and heard something that made him stop hard in is tracks.

"_Kakashi._"

The jonin spun on his heel to face the source of the whisper. A lump formed in his throat as he looked down at the broken body of his old teammate and friend. The image of Obito and Sakura's bodies flashed through his mind. 'No. Please, no.'

He flashed through some signs and placed his hand on the ground. There was a puff of smoke and Pakkun looked up at the masked ninja. "Hm? What's up, Ka-"

"Find a medic. Now!" The silver-haired ninja cut him off as he refocused on his teammate.

The nin-dog frowned. Kakashi never cut him off unless there was a very good reason. He glanced towards where the copy-cat was looking. His heart plummeted as he stared at the young woman. He glanced up at his summoner before he darted off into the forest in search of a medic. 'I'll do my best, Kakashi.'

Rin, despite the obvious pain she was in, smiled slightly as she struggled to raise her hand. "_You came_."

"Rin!" Kakashi lurched forward and knelt down next to her. "Rin, hold on. You're going to be fine. Just hold on."

"_I knew you would come_." Her smile widened as her hand slowly worked towards Kakashi's. "_You've always been there when I needed help._"

A violent cough racked the young woman's body as it attempted to expel the pooling blood from her lungs. As much as he tried to fight them back, tears began pooling in the ANBU's eyes as he watched his friend die. "Hold on, Rin. Help is on the way. Please, hold on."

The medic's smile faltered slightly as she watched water collect in Kakashi's visible eye. She grimaced in pain as she tried to force her arm to move. All she could manage was to inch towards him again, reaching for his hand. "_Don't cry. I'll be fine_."

The copy-cat took Rin's hand in his own. "Just hold on."

* * *

**Notes**: That concludes the somewhat depressing chapter 3. Hopefully you enjoyed it! If you have any questions or see something that needs fixed, feel free to PM me and ask or make a post on my forum! I would be more than happy to hear from you, and I'll do my best to answer you in a timely manner!

Again, thanks for reading! Have a great day!

Edited on October 10, 2011: Just some minor changes to reduce the repetition of descriptions.


	4. Chapter 4:  The Burdens We Carry

**For One More Chance**

**Chapter 4: The Burdens We Carry**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto.

**Notes**: Here is chapter four! If you see any problems with it or if you have any suggestions or comments, please feel free to PM me or leave a review! Oh, and if anyone wants to play an outstanding Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion mod, I highly recommend Nehrim: At Fate's Edge. And many, many thanks to That Which is Mesataki and Kagaseo for their fantastic work beta-reading this chapter. It wouldn't have been half as good as it is without their help.

* * *

"Where is everyone?" Pakkun growled to himself as he sprinted as fast as he could through the ruined forest. He had only been searching for two minutes, but the nin-dog had been on enough battlefields to know all too well that every second wasted was one more step Rin took towards the edge.

What was irritating him the most was that his usual advantage in tracking people had been rendered useless through _his own _actions. He had run through one of the more ravaged areas of the forest in hopes of finding a medic tending to the wounded, but he had not taken into account what the Kyubi's disruptive chakra and the pervasive smell of death in the area would do to his nose. He could now no longer smell anything other than those two odors, despite how hard or often he tried to remove it from his nostrils.

He inwardly cursed as _another_ minute passed with no sign of anyone. 'Rin…just hold on a bit longer.'

* * *

Kakashi leaped onto a tree about sixty yards away from the source of his sensei's chakra. Not wasting any time, the jonin jumped from the branch and landed on the ground. Forcing chakra into his muscles once again, he sprinted off towards where he believed Minato _should_ be.

A minute later, he saw four silhouettes through the trees and darkness. One was huge and unmistakably the Kyubi. The other three were much smaller, and though he still couldn't make out details, he could tell that two of them were his mentor and his wife. The last was low to the ground and looked like a pedestal of some sort.

Hatake uncovered his Sharingan in an attempt to get a better look. He paled in horror as the demon fox attempted to kill baby Naruto, who was sleeping on the pedestal. Its claws only impaled the boy's parents, who had thrown themselves in the way at the last second.

"No!"

In a massive burst of speed, he halved the distance between himself and the silhouettes in the blink of an eye and intertwined his fingers. There was a flash of light and the sounds of a thousand chirping birds filled the air.

"Sensei!" Kakashi yelled as he surged towards his mentor at full speed and shoved his right hand forward, a bluish mass of surging electricity encasing it. The attack struck an almost completely invisible barrier, warping it inward due to the force and immense power of the blow. For a second, everything stood still before the barrier slowly pushed Hatake's attack back. He let Lightning Cutter fizzle away as his hand dropped to his side.

He had been too late and had failed those close to him once again. Now all he could do was watch helplessly as one of the few people he was truly close to left this world once again, bleeding to death on the end of one of the Kyubi's claws. His Sharingan seared the memory and his failure into his mind, forever.

His fist clenched in anger with himself as he thought of those he had been unable to save. 'I'm sorry, Minato, Kushina…Naruto.'

* * *

The Yondaime Hokage panted as he struggled to keep himself conscious and fight off death long enough for his wife to say goodbye to their newborn son. Though his body was degrading quickly, his mind was as sharp as ever and he noticed a flash of blue light near the edge of the invisible barrier being used to keep the Kyubi contained. There was no question about what had caused it. 'Kakashi.'

He was brought back to his immediate surroundings when Kushina began to wrap up her tearful goodbye. "Naruto, you will face many painful times and hard times, but just be yourself! And have your dreams…and the confidence to make those dreams come true! I really, really, really wish I could be there to teach you so many more things. I really wish I could be with you longer…I love you." She paused, trying to fight back more tears. "Minato, I'm sorry for talking so much."

"No, it's alright," Minato comforted before continuing. "Naruto, as your father…I'll just second everything your chatty mom said." He smiled tiredly.

He took one last glance in the direction of his former student. 'I'm sorry, Kakashi, but it's all up to you now. Take care of my son.'

"Hakke fuin!"

* * *

A tense peace had settled over the two old teammates as they waited for help.

The silence was broken as another violent fit of coughs racked the young medic's body. Kakashi watched as his friend was slowly dying right in front of him. He wished he could do something to help her, but he knew that trying to move Rin in her condition would do much more harm than good. The silver-haired ninja berated himself for not bothering to learn anything more than basic first aid.

"_Kakashi?_"

He snapped from his thoughts and looked down at Rin. "Hm?"

"_Do you think Obito has been watching over us?_"

The jonin was taken aback by the question and fumbled to try to come up with an answer. "He…I…" Closing his eyes, he wiped the lingering tears from his eyes and slowly pushed up his forehead protector. "Yeah, I know he's been watching over us," he said, revealing Obito's Sharingan in his left eye. "He has always been."

The medic gave another pained smile. "_I think so too._"

There was a moment of silence before Rin squeezed his hand as she began to cry. "_I'm sorry._"

"For what?" He asked, trying to maintain his composure for his teammate's sake.

"_For leaving you and sensei._"

"You haven't left yet. Pakkun will be back with a medic any second. You're going to make it," the jonin comforted, though they both knew that it probably wasn't true.

The young woman smiled and squeezed his hand again. "_Thank you._"

Silence settled between them once again, before it was broken by Rin.

"_Kakashi._"

"Yes, Rin?"

"_I love you._"

His eyes widened in surprise before darting away from her face in shame. 'I know.'

He had known since that fateful mission in which he had lost his first true friend. The same mission where he had almost left Rin to die. In self-imposed punishment, he had not pursued a relationship with her. What right did he have to care for her if he had been willing to let her die?

Hatake shifted his focus back to her face. He opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by two thuds.

He glanced at the source of the noises…and felt relief flood his body. "You're going to make it, Rin. Just hold on a bit longer," he said, squeezing her hand. A small frown flashed across her face before it was replaced by a look of relief.

"_Okay._"

A young med-nin in white garb rushed over to Rin as the nin-dog walked up beside his master.

A green glow emanated from the medic's hands as he tried to save the young woman's life.

"Thank you, Pakkun." The ANBU said as he watched the medic work.

The dog nodded as he observed the scene as well. "I just hope I wasn't too late."

* * *

**Notes: **I apologize for such heavy and somewhat depressing scenes, but things should start to lighten up a bit after the next couple chapters. Well, at least for a while. Maybe.

I know I'm probably going to get some flak for killing off Minato and Kushina, so I'll give a bit of an explanation why I did it in an attempt to curb those complaints now. Honestly, I would have loved to have kept them alive, but I just couldn't let either of them live in good conscience. Not in this fic at least. This story is about Kakashi and how he has to deal with his past to move on and create a positive future. If I let either or both of them survive, then it would have undermined that (at least in my opinion).

Thanks for reading, and have a great day!

Edited on October 10, 2011: Just changed a few minor things.


	5. Chapter 5: Aftermath

**For One More Chance**

**Chapter 5: Aftermath**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Notes**: Thank you to Mesataki and Kagaseo for beta-reading this chapter! I hope you enjoy chapter 5!

* * *

As soon as the barrier holding the Kyubi vanished, Kakashi numbly walked forward. Despair began strangling his mind as the reality of the situation set in.

He had failed his teacher, Kushina and Naruto. If he had been faster or realized what was going on sooner, he might have been able to save them.

Hatake slowly came to a stop. "I'm sorry," he whispered as he stared down at the bodies of two of his most important people, ignoring the small group of ANBU and jonin that were witnessing the scene.

Why? Why did he always have to fail those he cared for? He was supposed to be a genius, a prodigy. He was supposed to be able to keep those around him safe, not have them die in front of him. Even with another chance, he had let those dearest to him die once again.

An aging hand landed softly on his shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. "I know it's hard, Kakashi, but they did it to protect the village and their family, like they would have wanted. We could not ask for more. Nobody could." A small pause. "All we can do now is pick up the pieces and ensure that the future they gave their life for becomes a reality."

Kakashi's eyes narrowed on the sleeping child. The old shinobi was right, there was still a small flicker of hope, just like before. Only this time he wouldn't ignore his pain and any reminders of it. He wouldn't fail Naruto. Never again.

The silver-haired man glanced back at Hiruzen before nodding in understanding and thanks.

The old man offered a reassuring smile and let his arm fall to his side. He glanced down at the child. "Would you take Naruto back to the Hokage's office and watch him until I arrive? I have to know how many lives were lost tonight."

The jonin understood the unspoken orders. _Protect him._ "Of course, Hokage-sama."

Careful not to wake Naruto up, he bent down and picked up the sleeping child, vanishing from the clearing as Hiruzen turned to speak to the remaining ninja.

* * *

Kakashi and Pakkun watched silently as the medic's hands hovered above Rin's body, the soothing green glow emanating from them providing most of the light in the clearing. Finally, after two minutes of tense silence, the young man let out an almost inaudible sigh as his jutsu faded away.

The ANBU worriedly took a step forward. "Will she be alright?" he asked weakly.

The medic glanced at them through the darkness. "I've stabilized her for now, but she still needs to be taken to the hospital as quickly as possible." He paused and glanced down at his patient. "It's a good thing that you found me when you did. A second later…" The young man's voice trailed off.

Kakashi felt a weight lift off of his chest as he released the breath he had held prisoner. He tried his best to ignore the man's last statement as he slid his hitai-ate over his Sharingan. It didn't matter how close she had come to death, all that mattered was that she was still alive. "I'll take her there," he said, taking another step forward.

The white garbed man glanced up at the jonin and slowly nodded. "Okay," he agreed, rising, "just try to be careful to not jolt her around too much. Newly healed wounds can reopen easily."

"I'll be careful," he responded quietly, glancing down at his injured friend. "Thank you."

The medic gave him a sympathetic smile before quietly leaving to search for any survivors in the rest of the clearing.

Kakashi bent down and gently lifted Rin off of the ground. He glanced over at his summon. "Thanks, Pakkun."

"Anytime," the nin-dog said quietly as the silver-haired man disappeared in a puff of smoke and leaves. He looked around the devastated clearing once before trotting over to help the medic in his search.

* * *

The clone landed in front of the hospital as softly as he could, hoping that he wasn't jostling the injured woman in his arms around too much. He felt his heart sink as he neared the door.

There was a flood of wounded being taken to the sanctuary, either by those that were not severely injured or by their own two feet. The former ANBU had known that the majority of the ninja in the village had been injured in some capacity, but he had not actually seen it firsthand. He had immediately been sent on patrols around the village last time to make sure that no other ninja village decided to add to their misery.

The jonin tried to push those thoughts away as he entered the sterile building, thanking a young genin that held the door open to allow him through.

Kakashi had expected the lobby of the hospital to be little more than chaos, but, after a fast glance around, was pleasantly surprised to find that, though the nurses and doctors were rushing around, all of the injured were being treated in some way.

Almost instantly, a passing nurse spotted Rin in his arms and made a beeline for him. Immediately, the nurse began scanning the young woman for injuries and then switched to a healing technique. Finishing a half minute later, she looked up at him. "Did you heal her?" she asked.

Hatake shook his head. "No. A med-nin did."

The brunette nodded, mostly to herself. "Makes sense. They did an excellent job." The woman glanced around the room and spotted an open gurney. "Please lay her down here," she said, moving over to the device.

He did as he was told and gingerly sat his friend down on the gurney.

"It's a good thing you brought her here. We'll take good care of her from here." Apparently sensing his concern, she paused and offered a small, comforting smile. "Don't worry, other than some possible minor scarring, she'll be just fine. Right now, the only thing she needs is rest."

Kakashi nodded in understanding, relieved that Rin was going to be fine. He watched silently as the nurse carted her away. Perhaps things would go his way this time around. He briefly wondered if the original had as good of news, but quickly dismissed the thought. It only really mattered what the real Kakashi knew.

The clone was about to release himself when a familiar, boisterous voice made itself known from the hospital's entrance. "Ah, Kakashi! I didn't expect to see you here." Guy announced, more than a few decibels over acceptable bounds.

Hatake sighed. He didn't have the energy to talk to Guy right then, but turned to face him anyway. He noticed glares from nurses and patients alike and decided to take the conversation elsewhere. "Hey, Guy. Why don't we take this conversation outside?" he asked lazily, watching the overly youthful man hand an injured ninja over to a nurse.

"Alright," he responded and headed for the door. Kakashi slowly followed the other man, realizing something as he did. 'Without his flak jacket, he looks just like Lee.'

He glanced down at himself, registering for the first time that he had his old ANBU setup on. He frowned. It felt strange not wearing his jonin sensei uniform. It felt like he was missing an important part of himself. Not that it mattered, he figured. It wouldn't take much to reassemble the outfit, and he had pretty much traded being an ANBU for Rin's life. He had no doubts that it had been a good trade.

Kakashi came to a halt next to his friend, whom had stopped a few yards from the hospital's entrance. The eccentric man turned to him. "So, what happened to my eternal rival that made him wind up in a hospital?" he inquired.

'At least Guy is the same,' the masked ninja thought before trying to figure out what he should say. He quickly decided against saying anything about time-travel. The jonin wasn't sure what to do with that information just yet. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke, sadness leaking into his voice as he thought of the night's events. "She almost died, Guy. If I had been a few seconds later..."

Guy's demeanor deflated as shock briefly flashed across his face before turning to sympathy. "Rin?"

He nodded and, trying not to think too much about it, turned to watch the injured continue to filter into the large building behind him. He felt bad for not helping them, but he was low on chakra and still had to let the original know what had happened with Rin.

"Will she be alright?" the man next to him asked worriedly.

The copycat looked at his friend. "They say she will be, but..."

Guy smiled reassuringly. "If they say that she'll be alright, then she will be. She's tough, she'll make it through." He struck his nice-guy pose.

The former ANBU smiled slightly. Yep, at least Guy was the same. "You're right. Thanks."

The man's blinding smile widened. "No problem, Kakashi." Noticing a medic barely walking under the strain of carrying an injured Akimichi, the spandex wearing man ran off to help. "Goodbye, my eternal rival!" he shouted over his shoulder.

Despite having not wanted to talk to Guy, Kakashi felt much better after doing so. There was something about the man's enthusiasm and positivity that almost always ended up feeling a bit energized himself. The clone felt an amused smile tug at his face as he watched his eternally energetic friend inadvertently frighten the medic. Satisfied he had done his job, he dispersed himself a second later.

* * *

Notes: I hope the chapter was up to par to you expectations. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or just want to talk, and please tell me if you see anything that you think needs fixed. Have a great day!


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